In an exclusive interview with Virgin Radio yesterday morning, Red Hot Chili Peppers frontman Anthony Kiedis revealed that Flea’s snowboarding accident was a blessing in disguise, as the album would not have been as good if it hadn’t happened.

Kiedis told Edith Bowman on Virgin Radio’s Breakfast Show:

“It derailed the party train. We were absolutely beside ourselves. We were kind of in mourning, looking down at the ground going ‘What?!’ We were ready to go, and Danger Mouse had made time in his busy schedule, which is crazy, and then it all fell apart. We really had to go rushing for that acceptance.

“And it turned out to be a blessing in disguise for sure because the next nine months we really got our heads together. We rewrote songs, we wrote new songs, and had that not happened I don’t think our record would be as good. I think we ended up with a really good record that wouldn’t have happened if flea hadn’t gone haywire on the final slope of the day.”

He also spoke about how he tests out his new music on people at bus stops, adding: “I listen to 90% of my music in the car. I have a sound system on my motorcycle so I can listen to loud music on my motorbike.

“If people are walking by or sitting in bus stops, they’re listening to what I’m listening to, which is also a good gauge when you’re writing. I’ll pull up to a bus stop full of people with new music and gauge the reaction. Any kind of a head nod will do. That’s a sure sign that something’s got a groove. If they sway back and forth, you’re like ‘OK, this is good.’”

Edith Bowman is the Breakfast Presenter on Virgin Radio. Listen on digital radio, online or via the Virgin Radio app